Biopsy is a medical procedure that involves taking small body tissue samples for analysis. The analysis of the body tissue sample is done in a laboratory under a microscope. Biopsies are performed to diagnose various health conditions including liver disease such as hepatitis, peptic ulcers, kidney diseases, identification of malignant or benign tumors, etc. Accordingly, biopsies may be performed on different parts of the body including liver, kidney, skin, prostrate, thyroid, brain, breast, lymph nodes and lungs.
Biopsy devices are used to perform biopsies from a biopsy region to be examined, for example, an inflicted region of a kidney of a subject. In order to extract the body tissue sample, a surgeon or a doctor first identifies a position of the biopsy region based on physical palpation, auditory auscultation, visual imaging or a combination of these techniques. Further a biopsy needle in the biopsy apparatus is moved towards the biopsy region, to remove the body tissue samples.
Different procedures of biopsies are used for different body parts or the affected tissue area. These procedures include excisional, endoscopic, and incisional biopsies. Excisional biopsy involves removal of the entire mass or abnormal area, of the body tissues. This procedure is generally used for lymph nodes or breast lumps, etc. Endoscopic biopsy uses a fiber optic endoscope to visualize and remove body cells from areas like the bladder, colon, etc. In case of the incisional or needle biopsy procedure, a special needle is used to extract tissue/cells from a body area of concern. This procedure may be used to take samples from muscles, bones and organs, such as liver or lungs.